SUCCEED WITH STYLE: Is Your Boss One of Your Champions?

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Monday, March 21, 2011

Margaret Batting, Image Consultant and Personal Brand Strategist

Last week I shared tips to help you get promoted. Think of this week’s column as a supplement to the first, equipping you with additional tips to help you move up quickly in your organization.

This may surprise you, but the people who get promoted are not the ones who work from dusk till dawn, never take a lunch or never come up for air during the workday. The people who get promoted have a plan. They know exactly what adds value to the bottom line, take on opportunities where they can showcase their talents and can communicate what sets them apart from the competition.

Following are tips to help you demonstrate [to your boss and other key players] that you are the best candidate for a coveted promotion:

1. Get feedback from colleagues, friends and family who know you best. You need to understand how others perceive and experience you. Ask them what they think your core strengths are as well as your weaknesses. Are they consistent with your self-assessment? One of the keys to success is self awareness.

2. Do a SWAT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats). Highlighting your strengths on the job and mitigating weaknesses is critical. You also don’t want to take on a role where your weakness is the main function.

3. Understand what is important to your boss. What are his or her key objectives? What projects drive bottom line results? How is she measured on her performance? Then do everything you can to support her goals.

4. Identify the competition and what makes you different from them. You need to showcase your abilities and value to the organization. Are you the best choice? What value do you offer that no one else does? They need to know why they should continue investing in you.

5. Clarify your target audience. Who can get you promoted within your organization or even outside your company? What are they looking for when selecting candidates? What can you do to capture their attention? Figure out how to get on their radar.

6. Don’t wait for your performance review to have the conversation about moving forward in your career. You need to plan in advance. Raises are usually set by the time you have your review. If you want a raise or promotion, you need to start working on your plan well in advance. 

Getting promoted is a process. It doesn’t happen by chance (or very rarely). You are in the driver’s seat so get your bus rolling! Next week, I'll share even more helpful tips, including answers to the questions mentioned in Tip #5.

 

Margaret Batting is the Corporate Style expert for GoLocalProv.com. Margaret is the owner and president of Elevé Image Consulting and the only certified image consultant and personal brand strategist in Rhode Island. She travels the country as the national corporate image consultant for CareerBuilder and serves as the style advisor liaison for Dress for Success Rhode Island, which will hold a fashion show fundraiser at the Biltmore on April 28. For more information, visit http://www.eleve-style.com.

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